This year we will be celebrating our 70th Anniversaryas aLocal Union. We were chartered on November 21, 1949. I want to thank all our charter members and retired members that stuck together through good times and bad to ensure they achieved better working conditions, wages, healthcare, and a sustainable pension.

Social News

I’d like to thank the membership for entrusting me to serve as Financial Secretary-Treasurer of this great Local Union. I really appreciate that we were able to have a smooth transition as Wade Pilgreen moved into retirement. We had a really good turnout for the January membership meeting, with plenty of good information for members to take back home and to the jobsites. We finished up 2017 with just over 11.6 million manhours, which came in just short of the hours worked in 2008. I still believe 2018 may top both of those years.

2018 Steward School is not far off, and we hope to see you there. Make arrangements to attend, if at all possible, and bring your family. There are plenty of activities scheduled for everyone. If you’ve never participated in the George Lambert/Harry Faucett, Jr. Memorial Scholarship Golf Tournament, consider putting a team together and coming out on Monday, or sign up individually and you will be placed with a team. If you are a Job Steward or think that you may be asked to steward a job in the future, please try to make the Steward Reporting Class. It will follow the Lincoln Electric BBQ Lunch, at the Training Center on Tuesday, April 10, at 1 p.m. Even if you already have experience as a Steward, the class is always a good chance to brush up.

The Ladies of 798 Basket Auction is on Wednesday evening, and if you’ve never participated in this, you’re missing out on a lot of fun. Countless charities have benefitted from this, and it’s only grown over the years, thanks to the generosity of our membership. Just think of all the good works our membership and their families do every year: the basket auction; providing Christmas for the battered women’s shelter; putting shoes on the feet of children who may not have ever had a new pair of shoes; the list goes on and on. Local 798 Pipeliners are truly the most generous group of people in the world. Also, make plans to attend the Retiree Banquet on Thursday evening April 12. Members with 50+ years of service are honored at the banquet, and it’s always nice to hear the words of advice and encouragement they offer up. We all owe these retirees a debt of gratitude for laying the foundation and setting the conditions that we all work under today. All of this is followed up by the regular membership meeting on Friday evening, April 13.

Please remember to participate in Local 798’s Action Network. Once you’ve activated your account, it’s as easy as a few clicks to sign your name to petitions and show your support for these projects. Some of you are doing a fantastic job by taking every action that comes through, but many are not participating at all. As Local 798 members, we all know there is strength in numbers, and we must use our numbers to advocate for these projects. The clients are taking notice, and if all of us participate, it will continue to pay off in jobs for our members. Welder Foremen and Job Stewards, please make a habit of speaking to members on your jobs about signing up and participating in the Action Network. Advocacy is going to be the tool that helps us get more of the market share.

If there’s anything I can ever help you with, please don’t hesitate to call. I am always proud to have the opportunity to serve the membership of this great Local.

MORE 798 STORIES

This year we will be celebrating our 70th Anniversary as a Local Union. We were chartered on November 21, 1949. I want to thank all our charter members and retired members that stuck together through good times and bad to ensure they achieved better working conditions, wages, healthcare, and a sustainable pension.

What a year! I hope that 2018 proved to be a prosperous year for every member of Pipeliners Local Union 798. Now that the holidays are behind us, it’s time to start thinking about making plans for Steward School.

Brothers and Sisters, by the time you receive this report we should be starting a new year. I hope everyone enjoyed a Merry Christmas whether at home or on the job. We enjoyed a fantastic work year and from all accounts, the new year looks very promising.

My regional preferences

Pipeliners build the pipelines that give communities across the country access to critical energy production. The country has benefited greatly from the use of our domestic oil and natural gas. These domestic resources have contributed billions of dollars to the national economy and helped energize markets across the country and beyond.